This invention relates to an improved electrical appliance wall plug for use with a split circuit duplex wall outlet.
Commonly found in residential kitchens, the split circuit duplex outlet provides power for up to two separate appliances which consume relatively large amounts of power, such as deep fryers, electric kettles, griddles, broilers and ovens, each having power requirements of up to 1500 watts.
Conventionally, kitchen appliances are designed for use with single circuit 115 volt alternating current outlets, and utilize a single 2 or 3 pronged male plug and a 2 or 3 wire power cord. Certain appliances, such as those mentioned above, can under perform at wattages limited, conventionally, to 1500 watts and may benefit substantially in their operation by an increase in power to between 1500 and 3000 watts. Current building codes require all kitchen counter outlets to be split circuit duplex wall receptacles providing two 1500 watt circuits operating at the same frequency but 180 degrees out-of-phase, which can accommodate plugs having 6 male prongs comprising 2 sets of 3 prongs, namely a "hot" or power lead (normally red or black), a neutral (white), and a ground (green), and thereby supply up to two 1500 watt 115 volt circuits (3000 watts) or one 3000 watt 230 volt circuit to a single specifically designed appliance.
Need has existed arising from the requirement for flexibility in outlet voltages for either 115 or 230 volts, without altering the household wiring connected to the split circuit duplex wall outlet, and to accommodate this need, prior art teachings, such as United States patent to Praml, 4,019,797 dated Apr. 16, 1977, have described plugs comprising two halves in a duplex wall plug which may operate to provide either standard 115 volt or 230 volt power, by substituting plugs having appropriate electrical connections.
One of the improvements comprised in the present invention involves the incorporation of a split circuit indicator light, which visually distinguishes between single and split circuit household duplex receptacles which are unidentifiable otherwise.
Another improvement involves the incorporation of switch means in the plug operating to selectively utilize either both or one side only of a split circuit power supply, thereby allowing the user the flexibility of access to 3000 watts or 1500 watts of power from a split circuit outlet. Further to this, the switch can also limit power to 1500 watts from a single circuit outlet found in kitchens wired prior to the current building codes.